President's Message:  Summer 2022

Thank you all who attended our Spring 2022 In-Person Convention. It was a huge success with such relevant and passionate speakers! Thank you so much to the convention committee, especially Tammy Stowers-Tonn and  Rob Dixon, for yet another well-done convention! There are no words to describe the energy of being connected and relating face-to-face with each other. It was such an honor to recognize School Psychologist of the Year Katelyn Oellrich from Mineral Point Unified School District! Congratulations Katelyn!

Our next in-person event will be WSPA’s Long Range Planning (LRP) and Summer Board Meeting. All WSPA members are welcome to join us for a time of reflection, planning, and socializing at Cedar Valley in West Bend, WI! There will be plenty of time to unwind, relax, and have fun connecting with others. It is a wonderful way to take a mini-retreat after a long school year. Because this event is essential to WSPA, we invite all WSPA members to attend free of charge (lodging and food are included when you register for free). If you are interested in attending LRP, please feel free to reach out to us or visit our website for more information.

Keep an eye out for our Spring Ballot, which will be sent via email. We will be voting on our Secretary Executive Board position. We are also voting on rephrasing the WSPA Vision & Mission statement and, most importantly, voting to make our Social Justice Committee a permanent Standing Committee. 

Get your voice heard and advocate for our profession! If you are interested in joining our WSPA board, please consider one of the following positions:  Technology Chair,  Professional Standards and Practice Chair, or a Regional Representative for the Lake to Lake region,  Central region, Chippewa Valley region, Pines region, Spawn region,  Suburban region, or Coulee region. You can find more information about the board positions on our website or reach out to wspapresident@gmail.com. We would love to hear from you!

As my time as WSPA President comes to an end, I want to thank all board members for your work and support over the past two years. I am thrilled to welcome Katie Johnson as WSPA’s next President and have no doubt she will lead and represent our profession well!

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President’s Message: Spring 2022

This time of year, I feel moved to start my newsletter by saying thank you for your service as a school psychologist. The past two years have been interesting. This school year has been the most challenging for me personally, making me more grateful than ever for my school psychologist colleagues, who continue to inspire, challenge, and push me to grow. Many of those friendships have been developed through serving on the WSPA board and being a WSPA member. Connection with family, friends, and colleagues has never seemed more important than this year. 

If you, too, are looking for ways to connect with school psychologist colleagues and make a difference in our field, you may want to consider getting involved with the WSPA board. We currently have some open positions on the board. If you are interested, please feel free to reach me at wspapresident@gmail.com. 

Also, make sure to get the WSPA Spring Convention on your schedule. It is currently being planned for in-person March 3^rd-4^th and will not disappoint! There will be opportunities to attend PREPaRE 2: Mental Health Crisis Interventions: Responding to an Acute Traumatic Stressor in Schools, hear updates from DPI specific to the new EBD rule, learn ways to support the mental health needs of students, and much more! 

We also are gearing up for our WSPA Employment Fair on February 25, 2022. It will be hosted at the Chula Vista in Wisconsin Dells. If you are looking for a school psychologist job, you don’t want to miss this. The WSPA Employment Fair is the only Employment Fair in Wisconsin devoted exclusively to School Psychology! The fair will bring together employers and candidates/interns to get acquainted through networking and screening interviews. School districts from around the state and region are invited to meet with experienced school psychologists seeking a new district and school psychology students seeking an internship. You can learn more and sign up on our WSPA website: https://www.wspaonline.net. 

Finally, it is never too early to plan for a summer getaway! WSPA Long Range Planning (LRP) 2022 is scheduled for June 23^rd – 24^th  at Cedar Valley Resort in West Bend. All WSPA members are welcome to join us and collaborate with school psychologists across the state. There will be plenty of time to unwind, relax, and have fun connecting.  It is a wonderful way to take a mini-retreat after a long school year. Because this event is essential to WSPA, we invite all WSPA members to attend free of charge (lodging and food are included when you register for free). If you are interested in attending LRP, please feel free to reach out to us or visit our website for more information.

In closing, may I encourage us all to stay connected with others and end with this quote from Helen Keller: ALONE WE CAN DO SO LITTLE. TOGETHER WE CAN DO SO MUCH.

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President’s Message: Winter 2021

We have been busy at WSPA, and so appreciate your continued support and commitment. Thank you to

all who attended our Fall 2021 Virtual Conference. It again was a huge success with such relevant topics!

I want to extend a special thank you to the convention committee, especially Tammy Stowers-Tonn, Rob

Dixon, and Denise Meyer, for all of their work and collaboration with the Illinois School Psychologists

Association to pull off another fabulous virtual conference. We are excited to announce that our Spring

conference is expected to be in-person, March 3 rd -5 th , and tentatively scheduled at the Wintergreen in

the Wisconsin Dells.

As many of you know, our roles as school psychologists in schools are more prevalent than ever with the

increasing needs of our students and families. We are proud to announce that the Honorable Tony

Evers, Governor of Wisconsin, has officially proclaimed the second full week of November as National

School Psychology Week in WI. This gubernatorial proclamation will recognize school psychologists each

year in correspondence with the National Association of School Psychologists NSPW initiative. This is a

tremendous honor and serves to celebrate YOU and the work you do each day to ensure children and

youth thrive in school, at home, and in life. WSPA would like to recognize and thank Rachel Davis, Caleb

Flack, Eliza Godfrey, Miranda Zahn, Maria Szalkowski, and Carly Holtzman from the UW-Madison School

Psychology graduate program for the vital role in making this happen!

Please be sure to check out our website for resources and ways to connect with other school

psychologists in our state. One fantastic opportunity free to all school psychologists in WI is a monthly

Race Brunch being offered by our Social Justice Committee. This winter, our Employment Fair is also

back in person on February 25, 2022, at the Chula Vista Resort in the Wisconsin Dells. You can sign up

for either of these events on our website.

We are committed to advocating and promoting equitable services in our state for our children and

families as an organization. In addition, we will continue to promote our profession and provide

opportunities for school psychologists to collaborate and have access to relevant learning opportunities.

We appreciate all the work school psychologists do and would like to thank each of you for dedicating

your life to improving the lives of students.